The high priest asked whether the charges were true. To this Stephen replied: “My brothers! Fathers! Listen to me. Our fathers in the desert had the meeting tent as God prescribed it when he spoke to Moses, ordering him to make it according to the pattern he had seen. The next generation of our fathers inherited it. Under Joshua, they brought it into the land during the conquest of those peoples whom God drove out to make room for our fathers. So it was until the time of David, who found favor with God and begged that he might find a dwelling place for the house of Jacob. It was Solomon, however, who constructed the building for that house. Yet the Most High does not dwell in buildings made by human hands, for as the prophet says:
The heavens are my throne, the earth is my footstool;
What kind of house can you build me? asks the Lord.
What is my resting-place to be like? Did not my hand make all these things?’“You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you are always opposing the Holy Spirit just as your fathers did before you. Was there ever any prophet whom your fathers did not persecute? In their day, they put to death those who foretold the coming of the Just One; now you in your turn have become his betrayers and murderers. You who received the law through the ministry of angels have not observed it.”
Those who listened to his words were stung to the heart; they ground their teeth in anger at him. Stephen meanwhile, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked to the sky above and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at God’s right hand. “Look!” he exclaimed, “I see an opening in the sky, and the Son of Man standing at God’s right hand.” The onlookers were shouting aloud, holding their hands over their ears as they did so. Then they rushed at him as one man, dragged him out of the city, and began to stone him. The witnesses meanwhile were piling their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul.
As Stephen was being stoned he could be heard praying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” He fell to his knees and cried out in a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And with that he died. Saul, for his part, concurred in the act of killing.
Are they these extreme conservatives who are right-to-life, pro-assault-weapon, anti-gay? Is that who they are? Because if that’s who they are and they’re the extreme conservatives, they have no place in the state of New York, because that’s not who New Yorkers are.
I don’t expect Cardinal Dolan and other prelates to walk into the lion’s den. But perhaps the current “live and let live” strategy isn’t working as effectively as they think.
But then again, who am I to judge?
very powerful juxtapositon of that picture with that scripture. very powerful.
At the conclave when they were electing our new pope I remember hoping it would not be dolan, hoping it would not be schonborn,hoping it would not be o’malley… wishing B16 didn’t feel he had to go.
God does not leave us orphans, though. We have to hope and trust
Perfect.
Saul holding the cloaks….
Dolan holding his pride.
Who knows. Possibly Dolan will have a dramatic conversion experience and Speak Up for the Truth.
What substantive difference is there between Dolan and Cuomo, and the High Priest and Pontius Pilate?
As Pascal observes, “The religion of the Jews seemed to consist essentially in the fatherhood of Abraham, in circumcision, in sacrifices, in ceremonies, in the Ark, in the temple, in Jerusalem, and, finally, in the law, and in the covenant with Moses. I say that it consisted in none of those things, but only in the love of God, and that God disregarded [réprouvait] all the other things.”
“…but only in the love of God, and God disregarded all the other things.”
Pondering on Pascals observation a connection is clear. The Love of God and neighbor is Jesus’ commandments.
To not see the sacred in life or at the very least respect for life is death.
Pilot and Caiaphas could not recognize truth or life. They could only think of themselves and at what personal cost they would be burdened with if they allowed their conscience to win the moment.
History repeats itself. 🙁
–Pontius Pilate (Pilot) excuse my error.
An intelligent bishop is very leery of figures in the secular world. Most of them are going to harbor elite attitudes and those attitudes are commonly disgusting. That Dolan was willing to appear on a dais with Andrew Cuomo – whom even fairly jaded political operators regard as a thug – is indicative of a catastrophic failure in the realm of his obligation to teach (if not his obligation to sanctify).
What’s depressing is that Dolan was appointed to the episcopacy to clean up the godawful mess left by Peggy Steinfels favorite bishop, Rembert Weakland. Then they slide him over to New York, presumably to improve p.r. after the reign of Cardinal-apparatchick Egan (who received that post after making a hash of things in Bridgeport and over the objections of his cancer-stricken predecessor). O’Malley was appointed to Fall River and then Boston to rebuild after the ministrations of Cdl. Law. It turns out the clean-up crew are buffoons.
Just like finding error with my POOR grammar, I’m going to admit that my attitude to this thread is in error too.
The problem is me.
I haven’t been praying enough for our Bishops our Priests. It’s much easier to arm-chair coach the Bishops than to offer up dinner (fast) for their spiritual wellbeing. We must remember that they are enemy #1 and Satan is relentless against our Holy Church leaders.
As for me I will attempt to pray more and condemn less.
Peace
Philip: Prayer and fasting. Me, too.
Pity the Bishops, including the Bishop of Rome. They must not shun sinners as did the Pharisees, they must be gentle as doves yet wise as serpents, for as “the Lord said: Simon, Simon, behold Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat”. As to Cuomo’s assertion that people who hold certain views do not belong in the State of New York, I reply, that with such an attitude, Cuomo does not belong in the governor’s mansion. I wonder if in his salad days, he subscribed to the New Left platitude that dissent was the highest form of patriotism. So Cuomo would shun-even banish-people like myself. Perhaps he does not deserve the polite treatment of those who rightly disagree with him on serious matters.
Michael Paterson-Seymour quotes Pascal,
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“The religion of the Jews seemed to consist essentially in the fatherhood of Abraham, in circumcision, in sacrifices, in ceremonies, in the Ark, in the temple, in Jerusalem, and, finally, in the law, and in the covenant with Moses. I say that it consisted in none of those things, but only in the love of God, and that God disregarded [réprouvait] all the other things.”
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Two hundred years before Pascal, the monk Thomas à Kempis (1380-1471) described what is possible for those who rely not upon themselves or worldly things, but instead upon Our Lord Jesus who is Love,
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“Love is a mighty power, a great and complete good; Love alone lightens every burden, and makes the rough places smooth. It bears every hardship as though it were nothing, and renders all bitterness sweet and acceptable. The love of Jesus is noble, and inspires us to great deeds; it moves us always to desire perfection. Love aspires to high things, and is held back by nothing base. Love longs to be free, a stranger to every worldly desire, lest its inner vision become dimmed, and lest worldly self-interest hinder it or ill-fortune cast it down. Nothing is sweeter than love, nothing stronger, nothing higher, nothing wider, nothing more pleasant, nothing fuller or better in heaven or earth; for love is born of God, and can rest only in God above all created things.
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Love flies, runs, leaps for joy; it is free and unrestrained. Love gives all for all, resting in One who is highest above all things, from whom every good flows and proceeds. Love does not regard the gifts, but turns to the Giver of all good gifts. Love knows no limits, but ardently transcends all bounds. Love feels no burden, takes no account of toil, attempts things beyond its strength; love sees nothing as impossible, for it feels able to achieve all things. Love therefore does great things; it is strange and effective; while he who lacks love faints and fails.”
― Thomas à Kempis, The Inner Life